


Cosmic burn

by icecreamsuki



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-09
Updated: 2014-12-09
Packaged: 2018-02-28 19:17:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2744084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/icecreamsuki/pseuds/icecreamsuki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A marketing director on the way to his lunch meal meets bored company doctor looking for excitement. Cosmic forces in the form of hot coffee. <br/>Never in his life has he been asked to strip off his pants with several people as audience.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cosmic burn

**Author's Note:**

> Sakurai Masaki x Ninomiya Kazunari (yes you got that right, a mixture of Aiba's personality and Sho's fashion sense)

\---

It was a quiet day at work, which was not quite unusual in fact, given that most days were marked by paper works, medical certificates of employees who abuse the ever infamous flu as the cause of their absence, paper works, an office lady or two complaining about a headache along with the demands of their boss as well as their husbands, and more paper works. 

He studied at the premiere medical school in Japan on a scholarship, and trained at the most well-renowned tertiary hospital in Tokyo. Coming from a middle class family, he had a vision of helping with the expenses as a full-time doctor while handling rare, exciting cases in the hospital. He was at the prime of his life with a thirst for adventure and hunger for knowledge.

Yet in the unpredictable way fate manipulates people's lives, several events occurred at once, almost as if a recipe for the perfect scenario. His father had his eyes on a promotion, willing to do almost anything to play by his boss' good side. An administrative order was issued by the government stating that companies with at least a certain number of employees should employ a doctor to oversee their health. And Sakurai Masaki had just acquired his license as a doctor. 

The cosmic forces brought him there at Storm Inc. as a company doctor, in a little office with a view of a godforsaken garden marked with wilting flowers and grimy pots. 

He almost wanted to be a gardener instead. 

\---

The noontime bus ride was the most remarkable part of the week for him. It was usually scheduled on a Wednesday, when there were no conferences or meetings to attend, and no endless papers to stress over. The slow and easy pace at the office allowed him the leisure to go out for lunch at his favorite convenience store downtown. More than the savory taste (and the cheap price) of their 'bestseller' hamburger, he took pleasure in the absence of people who knew him. 

Their company was gracious enough to provide the higher-ups with a monthly free ticket pass in the bus so he basically had no out of pocket expenses in this little whim of his. He would argue that it was not a whim, it being his coping mechanism to stay sane. Besides, it would be a pity not to utilize something that the company has already paid for.

He was Ninomiya Kazunari (more commonly known to friends as Nino), the manager of the marketing department of Storm Inc. 

He sat at the left side, fourth row from the front with a seat beside the window. It was his favorite seat because of the good view of the outside world and the ease of movement in and out of the bus. Somehow, having that seat open for him to take made him feel that good things were bound to happen that day. 

However, again, in the unpredictable way fate manipulates people's lives, several things happened in a moment in quick succession. Opening the lid of his cup of cafe americano made especially hot for him by the clerk at the ground floor convenience store of their company building, he drew satisfaction from the way the steam swirled above the surface of the dark liquid almost as if teasing him to indulge. At the same time, a bouncy kid who somehow reminded him of his best friend swept past him, hitting his elbow protruding towards the aisle, and in turn tipping his cup off balance and spilling its contents directly on the right thigh are of his black slacks. Despite taking pride in his brilliant reflexes, Nino wasn't able to respond as quickly as he wanted.

A gasp came from the other side of the aisle. He was certain the gasp did not come from him since he was in a daze amidst the painful heat at his thigh. 

"Take off your pants!" A voice came from the other side of the aisle. The tone was, indeed, marked by reason and authority, but upon closer inspection, the man was wearing a gray parka on another gray parka, checkered pink pants and a pink helmet inside the bus. Inside the bus. Nino's impression of the man took a hundred and eighty degree turn. The voice and the appearance were strikingly opposite. 

"Just take off your pants now! Come on!" The person was looming over him by the second. 

Never in his life has he been asked to strip off his pants with several people as audience. Granted, there was no note of malice or perversion in the tone of the man’s voice, and the situation was far from inciting eroticism from anyone, yet Nino was stunned by such a demand. 

All he wanted was to have a peaceful date with his hamburger!

"Just take it off, damn it! It could get worse if you leave your hot pants in contact with your skin!" The man said throwing his outer parka at Nino for cover as he began to reach for the button and zipper on Nino's pants. Did he just say 'hot pants'? Nino thought. He was brought back to his senses only when his assailant managed to unzip his pants.

"Whoa! Whoa! What do you think you're doing?" Nino forcefully swatted the guy's hand away. By then, every head inside the bus was turned to them by the ruckus they were causing. 

"The burn wound can get deeper if you keep your pants on. Just take it off! Trust me, I’m a doctor!" Nino was about to make a cheeky retort demanding who in their right mind would believe that the man was a doctor, but they were already being ushered out by the driver of the bus. 

They alighted at the nearest stop, Nino on his suit and a parka that acted as a makeshift skirt to cover his lower regions, and the doctor one gray parka less with black pants hanging above his shoulders, supporting his patient. 

Nino thought he heard a collective sigh of relief from the crowd at the bus before they left, but he dismissed it as a figment of his imagination. Perhaps he was also imagining this bizarre situation with the persistent self-proclaimed doctor. 

The taxi ride was a blur. What with the stinging pain in his thigh, the frustration of missing out on his weekly tradition, the noticeable rumbling of his stomach, and the company of a strange man who was shockingly a doctor with a distinct style, his energy was drained and he simply surrendered to a momentary slumber only to be awaken by a persistent nudging and an urgent call of "We're here!"

As Nino was assisted out of the taxi and into broad daylight, he realized that he was exactly where he came from. He was back at the company building where he works at. A few meters away to his left was the convenience store where he bought his Cafe Americano. A few meters away to his right was the bus stop. It was like a trip down recent memory lane, only he didn't have time for nostalgia since he was already unceremoniously being picked up by the security guard, balancing his waist on the broad shoulder of the muscular guard, with the self-proclaimed doctor in tow giving off instructions. 

Before he had time to be embarrassed at the ninety-nine percent probability that everyone at the lobby saw his gray parka makeshift skirt riding up the back of his thighs, he was already being deposited on a bed at what seemed to be an examining room. 

It was quiet. There was no audience to see the head of the marketing department make a fool of himself. It somehow felt reassuring. However, upon the sight of the curtain designed with red and green swirls, a steady throbbing on both sides of his head was triggered. Could he perhaps be excused for the day? All he wanted was to curl into a ball with eyes closed to diminish his sensory overload. 

There was a singular muttering and the clanks of metal lids from the other side of the curtain. Nino sighed. At least his audience was diminished to one - one crazy obnoxious self-proclaimed doctor. Nino wasn't sure if he should be relieved by that fact, knowing that this man marked the start of the series of unfortunate events of that day. Checking his wristwatch, it was only half past twelve. He bitterly laughed at how a lot of bizarre things can happen in a mere half an hour. 

Funny. All he actually wanted was to have a peaceful date with his hamburger. Was that too much to ask?

The doctor peeked through the gap between the curtains and walked in, carrying a tray with a variety of medical supplies, and wearing an eager grin. Thankfully, he had taken off his pink helmet. 

\---

All he wanted was a trip to the animal shop preferably dressed as a commoner and not as a doctor. He had read in one of his animal magazines that animals can get jumpy at the sight of white, such as pristine coats worn by doctors or scientists. He chose gray which was a more earthly color, and wore his favorite pink checkered pants because real animal lovers wear pink. And since the coolness of the autumn was starting to get too much for him upon walking a few steps away from the building, he went back to retrieve another parka – another gray one. 

It was lucky indeed that he did. For how would he be able to rescue the poor man from getting a second or even a third degree burn from his steaming coffee? Just the sight of the open cup and the swirling steam inside a bus triggered warning bells in the doctor's mind. The approach of the bouncy kid heightened his alarm. 

Sakurai Masaki trained in a tertiary hospital. He knew how to manage a burn wound like the back of his hand, yet the patient was being difficult, reluctant to remove his pants. Shouldn't it be common sense that the more you keep the cloth in contact with your skin, the worse the burn could get? Apparently, common sense was not so common anymore, he tsked. 

He felt like it was fate that he was on board that bus - that there was this cosmic power that drove him to return to the building, retrieve the parka, postpone his trip to be on the exact same bus ride as the man that he should help. There was no other explanation! 

He was practically smiling like an idiot as he cleaned the wound with sterile gauze and an abundance of fluids, applying a layer of white ointment in the affected area and covering it with rolled gauze, finishing the process with a knot shaped like bunny ears. 

"It was a good thing that you agreed to strip your pants, you know? It could get worse than this," the doctor said as he was rearranging the materials he used. He just really wanted to emphasize his point and spread that simple and basic concept to the general public. 

"I think if you were so concerned, you could have brought me to a hospital, you know,” Nino said as he stood up and made a move to put on his pants. 

"Oh. Right." Doctor Sakurai Masaki hadn’t actually considered that idea, his mind full of finally having an interesting patient, and him equipped with the skill and the materials to effectively manage the case. He had a week long stint in the Burn Unit of the most well-renowned tertiary hospital in the country, for crying out loud. 

“And I think I can use my position and have a sexual harassment case filed against you,” Nino said with a smirk, his pants in their rightful place. It was only then that the doctor noticed the ID hanging on his patient’s neck. 

“B-but I was only trying to help!” The doctor was almost flailing by this time. He had to explain. What would it look like in his resume if it was indicated next to his first job that he was fired due to sexual harassment. Besides, would that entail going to prison? That would totally ruin his career! Was this guy trying to blackmail him in exchange for favors? Would he sacrifice his dignity just to keep his reputation intact? The doctor was already in a state of panic and despair when his patient cut in. "But I guess it would be a pity not to make use of the company's supply of gauze and ointments." Nino said as he motioned to leave.  
The doctor simply stood at his place, stunned. “Does that mean I’m not fired?”

Nino chuckled at the doctor’s thought process. A threat of a sexual harassment case escalated to getting fired. 

“No. My retraction of the case being a form of thank you for taking care of my wound, with bunny ears and all,” Nino said with a genuine smile. He was absently fiddling with the knot as he spoke. 

“Huh.”

“And I’ll remind the company’s gardener to liven up your view by the window,” Nino offered before he closed the door and left.

“Thank you, Nino-chan!” He called out to the closed door.


End file.
